This past spring, the Baeble gang headed down to Austin for a little heat, humidity, and a hell of a good time at SXSW. Setting up shop at Empire Control Room and Garage, The Baeble Bounce House offered 11 bands refuge and ridiculously good crowds for the afternoon.

One of those bands happened to be the legendary, British rock outfit Bloc Party, who came to Austin in support of their fifth studio album, Hymns. To say we were out of our minds excited to host Kele, Russell, and Co. is a bit of an understatement. The band have always boasted one of rock's more massive sounds, punctuated by laser guided, precise hooks, rhythms that charge like a freight train, and singer Kele Okerere's signature poetics. From their 2005 debut Silent Alarm through the present, Bloc Party have cemented their legacy as one of Britain's most exciting and enduring rock acts. We were honored to have them swing by our party and we've been counting down the days until we could release this show.

Here Kele, Russell, along with new members Justin Harris (Menomena) and 20 year old, drumming phenomenon Louise Bartle (and we thought former drummer Matt Tong was unreplaceable...silly us!) cruise through a set of songs that cherry pick from the band's decade (plus) long career. Many of Hymns best new cuts are here, including the quirky, synth-laiden anthems "The Love Within" and "Virtue". For long time fans, the band also dig into their past, cycloning through beloved, back catalogue tracks like "Hunting For Witches", "Positive Tension", and of course "Banquet"; the Silent Alarm-era single that's got to be considered the band's seminal classic. Throughout the course of this performance, the band is as sharp as they have ever been and the stunning lighting design takes on a presence all its own. It's a gorgeous show and we're so very excited to be able to share it with you.

Artist Bio

Bloc Party are a British indie rock band, composed of Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Russell Lissack (lead guitar), Gordon Moakes (bass guitar, synths, backing vocals, glockenspiel), and Matt Tong (drums, backing vocals). Their brand of music is said to have been drawn from such bands as The Cure, Mogwai, Siouxsie and the Banshees and in their more recent work Radiohead.
The band was formed at the 1999 Reading Festival by Okereke and Lissack. They went through a variety of names before settling on Bloc Party in 2003. Moakes joined the band after answering an advert in NME magazine, while Tong was picked via an audition. Bloc Party got their break by giving BBC Radio 1 DJ Steve Lamacq and Franz Ferdinand's lead singer, Alex Kapranos, a copy of their demo "She's Hearing Voices".
In February 2005, the band released their debut album Silent Alarm. It was critically acclaimed and was named Indie Album of the Year at the 2006 PLUG Awards and NME Album of the year which both honour indie music. That year, the record was also certified platinum in Britain. The band built on this success in 2007 with the release of their second studio album, A Weekend in the City, which reached a peak of number two in the UK Albums Chart and number twelve in the Billboard 200. In August 2008, Bloc Party released their third studio record, Intimacy which entered the UK Albums Chart at number eight and number eighteen on the Billboard 200. The band went on a hiatus in October 2009 to focus on side projects. They reunited in September 2011, and shortly thereafter released their fourth album, Four, which entered the UK Albums Chart at number three. As of May 2012, Bloc Party have sold two million albums worldwide.

Temptation hides In the space between Lord, help me fight this desire for fire Words can cleanse or purify Or tear down a pack of lies In your presence, consequence I can't stop trembling For all of my virtue Why must I not hold the truth? For all my good fortune I would change my place with you This path will lead us back Will lead us back to ruin For all of my virtue Why must I not hold the truth? This path will lead us back Will lead us back to ruin For all of my virtue Why must I not hold the truth? Once in a while The urge resurfaces So we split hairs As rumors circulate And there's a need to fertilize Behind my lover's trusting eye Like water drops on burning warts I can't stop trembling For all of my virtue Why must I not hold the truth? For all my good fortune I would change my place with you This path will lead us back Will lead us back to ruin For all of my virtue Why must I not hold the truth? I've fallen I've fallen again I've fallen I've fallen again I've fallen I've fallen again I've fallen again - One, two One, two One, two, three, four. I was sitting On the roof of my house With a shotgun And a six packer, six packer, six packer The newscaster says, "The enemy's among us," As bombs explode on the 30 bus Kill your middle class indecision Now is not the time for liberal thought So I go hunting for witches I go hunting for witches Heads are going to roll In the '90s Optimistic as a teen Now it's terror As airplanes crash into towers, into towers, crash into towers The Daily Mail says, "The enemy's among us Taking our women and taking our jobs," The reasonable fool is being drowned out By the non-stop baying, baying, baying for blood So I go hunting for witches I go hunting for witches Heads are going to roll I was an ordinary man with ordinary desire I watched TV and it formed me I was an ordinary man with ordinary desire There must be accountability Disparate and misinformed Fear will keep us Hey, hey, hey, hey Hey, hey, hey, hey So I go hunting for witches I go hunting for witches Heads are going to roll I was an ordinary man with ordinary desire I watched TV and it formed me I was an ordinary man with ordinary desire There must be accountability Disparate and misinformed Fear will keep us He said you're just as boring as everyone else When you tut and you moan And you squeal and you squelch He said you're just as boring as everyone else Because nothing ever happens Things replace things Days replace days Things replace things She said, "I'm going to use my teeth and my claws," She said, "I'm going to use my teeth and my claws," She said, "I'm going to use my teeth and my breasts," I'm going to make it happen She said And you cannot run or ever, ever escape You cannot run or ever hide it away Something glorious is about to happen The reckoning They go, "You're just as boring as everyone else When you tut and you moan And you squeal and you squelch," They go, "You're just as boring as everyone else," Stuck past timing The fear and the yearning The fear and the consumption The fear and the yearning It's going to, it's going to, it's going to eat you alive They go And you cannot run or ever, ever escape And you cannot run or ever hide it away Something glorious is about to happen The reckoning They go - Now, come on, South By. Show us what you got. They go why'd you have to get so hysterical Why'd you have to get so hysterical Why'd you have to get so hysterical Why'd you have to get so hysterical Why'd you have to get so hysterical Why'd you have to get so hysterical Why'd you have to get so hysterical - South By! Play it cool, boy Just play it cool, boy Play it cool, boy Play it cool I can sense that Something important is about to happen It's going to rock It takes time to enjoy it - Now, come on, you bunch of fuckers, show us what you've got. At Les Trois Garcons We meet at precisely 9:00 I order the foie gras And I swallow with complete disdain Bubbles rise in champagne flutes But when we kiss, I feel nothing Feasting on sleeping pills And Marlboro Reds So busy, won't save you Oh, how our parents They suffered for nothing Live the dream, live the dream Like the '80s never happened People are afraid, are afraid To merge on the freeway Disappear here We stroll past the queue Into the magazine launch party I am handed a pill And I swallow with complete disdain Kick drum bangs off the high-hat Remember to look bored We suck each other's faces And make sure we are noticed But cocaine won't save you Because East London is a vampire It sucks the joy right out of me How we long for corruption Oh, how our parents They suffered for nothing Live the dream, live the dream Like the '80s never happened People are afraid, are afraid To merge on the freeway A heart of stone, a smoking gun I can give you life, I can take it away A heart of stone, a smoking gun I'm working it out Why'd you feel so underrated? Why'd you feel so negated? Come on, you fuckers Turning away from the light Becoming adult Turning into my soul I wanted to bite, not destroy To feel her underneath Turning into my soul She don't think straight She don't think straight She's got such a dirty mind and it never ever stops And you don't taste like her and you never ever will And we don't read the papers, we don't read the news Heaven's never enough, we will never be fooled Turning away from the light Becoming adult Turning into my soul I wanted to bite, not destroy To feel her underneath Turning into my soul And if you feel a little left behind We will wait for you on the other side And if you feel a little left behind We will wait for you on the other side Because I'm on fire Because you know I'm on fire when you come Because you know I'm on fire Because you know I'm on fire, so stomp me out Because I'm on Sing it Because I'm on I said sing it Because I'm on Because I'm on - Thank you. Thank you. Thank you very much, South By. As I was saying earlier, we're having some technical issues, so we can't play any of the songs that use loads of keyboard, sadly. It is caput. But luckily, we have enough guitar rock jam. This fennel tea that you got for me Well, it does its magic discreetly I wrote this song for you, it's true In our only south facing room See, I don't know what the future holds But I hope we'll face it together Because rock and roll has got so old Just give me neo-soul Into the earth, our bodies will go We've got to keep it all fluid Into the earth, our bodies will go You've got to keep me good-looking You've seen the color of my cash Does it not impress? Was I way too flash? Are you backing away from me? Calm down, Yoshi, the fungi Is helping this fun guy deliver See, I got high and I danced all night And I'll sing you Al Green songs I'm just trying to gently blur the lines With my trusty sensimilla Don't be so jaded or so coy When we could just be familiar Into the earth, our bodies will go We've got to keep it all fluid Into the earth, our bodies will go You've got to keep me good-looking Take a lover, start a life And try to keep an open mind I'll dress up for you, I'll scrub up nice I'll make your mother proud I'll make your mama proud I'll make your mama proud And if I stop I won't go hungry because I know how to steal I've got to thank my older brothers For keeping me real Into the earth, our bodies will go We've got to keep it all fluid Into the earth, our bodies will go You've got to keep me good-looking Take a lover, start a life And try to keep an open mind I'll dress up for you, I'll scrub up nice I'll make your mother proud I'll make your mama proud I'll make your mama proud - Thank you. Thank you. This is D major. Lord, give me grace and dancing feet As I conquer all anxiety The angel told me not to fear The power, it is in me For I have learned the way to pray Like a muscle growing tall now Bind the past into a knot And let the love consume us Let the love consume us Let the love consume us Can you hear the stars now sing Resounding in D major? As the god vibration resonates And pulls us up towards her Take your shoes off, feel the earth Beneath your feet, respond to touch And let our laughter now ring forth As the love consumes us The love within is moving upwards Sweeter than any drug The melody is taking over Guide my hand through this path Pull back the veil Let your eyes meet this world The love within is moving upwards South By, don't you want to get high? Don't you want to get - Now, South By. South By, what the fuck is going on? They told me that I couldn't get any drugs yesterday. I was not feeling that because I know if there is one place in the world where you want to get high, it's Austin fucking Texas. The love within is moving upwards Sweeter than any drug The melody is taking over Guide my hand through this path Pull back the veil Let your eyes meet this world The love within is moving upwards One last time Don't you want to get high? - Thank you. Thank you very much. This is a banger. Do we like bangers here in Austin? Or do we prefer blues jams? This is a banger. Who got the beat in time? Who got the beat this time? Tell it, tell it Who got the beat in time? Keep it hundred What you going to show me, bro? What you going to show me, fam? I'm not done You want a word with me? You want to show me some? And tell that bitch to get off my shit Smoking on that homegrown You know that we keep it on point See, I could have come out tonight With a flex and a flow And you know it might When I get fucked up When I get half cut Going to make them prang get rowdy Hey yeah Make it real Make them feel Make a scene Hey yeah Make it loud Make it proud Make it count We go, you better watch yourself We go, you better watch I'm going to let you have your say But I ain't going to have your way I'm going to see I'm going to let you have your say But... Like it, don't like it, don't force Sit in a club on this street we own With two shots and a world of pain And two shots, and a Tell your dudes that we get rude Smoking sour diesel You know that that shit is so bate So give me a rhythm And I'll step, and I'll go Kissing your teeth, and you're vexing bros Rocking your world Then I jack your phone And I told them, I said Hey yeah Make it real Make them feel Make a scene Hey yeah Make it loud Make it proud Make it count Hey yeah Make it real Make them feel Make a scene Hey yeah Make it loud Make it proud Make it count - I said make it count South By, you can't hear me. We got to make it count. We got to make it count. We're gonna, we're gonna, we're gonna, we're gonna Get ratchet Hey yeah Make it real Make them feel Make a scene Hey yeah Make it loud Make it proud Make it count Hey yeah Make it real Make them feel Make a scene Hey yeah Make it loud Make it proud Make it count - Thank you very much.

Artist Bio

Bloc Party are a British indie rock band, composed of Kele Okereke (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Russell Lissack (lead guitar), Gordon Moakes (bass guitar, synths, backing vocals, glockenspiel), and Matt Tong (drums, backing vocals). Their brand of music is said to have been drawn from such bands as The Cure, Mogwai, Siouxsie and the Banshees and in their more recent work Radiohead.
The band was formed at the 1999 Reading Festival by Okereke and Lissack. They went through a variety of names before settling on Bloc Party in 2003. Moakes joined the band after answering an advert in NME magazine, while Tong was picked via an audition. Bloc Party got their break by giving BBC Radio 1 DJ Steve Lamacq and Franz Ferdinand's lead singer, Alex Kapranos, a copy of their demo "She's Hearing Voices".
In February 2005, the band released their debut album Silent Alarm. It was critically acclaimed and was named Indie Album of the Year at the 2006 PLUG Awards and NME Album of the year which both honour indie music. That year, the record was also certified platinum in Britain. The band built on this success in 2007 with the release of their second studio album, A Weekend in the City, which reached a peak of number two in the UK Albums Chart and number twelve in the Billboard 200. In August 2008, Bloc Party released their third studio record, Intimacy which entered the UK Albums Chart at number eight and number eighteen on the Billboard 200. The band went on a hiatus in October 2009 to focus on side projects. They reunited in September 2011, and shortly thereafter released their fourth album, Four, which entered the UK Albums Chart at number three. As of May 2012, Bloc Party have sold two million albums worldwide.
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